Apparatus for the treatment of textiles



Oct. 16, 1951 w. w. sPooNER APPARATUS FOR THE TREATMENT 0E TEXTILESoriginal Filed Marc Inventor B A MW tlomeya Patented Oct. 16, 1951'APPARATUS Fon THE TREATMENT oF i TEXTILES William Wycliffe Spooner,Ilkley, vEngland Original application March 25, 1949, Serial No. 83,496.Divided and this application June 28,

1950, Serial N0. 170,777.

cember 5, 1947 3 Claims.

' The present invention relates to an improved apparatus for thetreatment of woven textile webs, and is a division of application SerialNo. 83,496, led March 25, 1949.

Normally woven textile fabric during weaving and until the time it isfinished, whilst undergoing desizing, scouring, washing, dyeing, dryingand other processes, is subjected to warp tension, the partial orcomplete compensation of which, as upon a stentering machine, inevitablyimposes sever strain on the fabric with loss of strength and possibledamage.

An object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus which willrelease the strains on warp and weft existing in a Woven fabric webafter weaving, and then set it to a desired width, with completecontinuity, thus avoiding undesired markings on the fabric web as wouldinevitably occur where the web is subject to a series of processesspaced in time requiring the web to be hatched by rolling or lapping.

By this invention the woven fabric web is passed continuously from adesizing machine to a scray and from thence to a washing machine or ascouring, rinsing and washing machine wherein it is subject to impact onone or both sides by liquor streams, preferably directed on to thefabric web from nozzles disposed singly or in groups, the material thenpassing through squeeze rolls, whereupon it is either plaited up into aloose pile or passed to another scray. Thereafter the woven fabric webmay be passed to a drying machine, Vor alternatively through a machinein which dye liquor is directed on to one or both sides of thecontinuously moving fabric web by nozzles, to another scray and thenceto a drying machine. This drying machine may be of any known typethrough which fabric web can be conveyed with substantial absence ofwarp and weft tension, but preferably .includes a plurality of guiderollers, certain of which can be driven, and of these some will bedriven at a different speed to others to assist in relieving warptension. The drying is preferably effected by hot air or gas streamsdirected at high velocity from nozzles or groups of nozzles disposed onone or opposite sides of the web.

The nozzles for impacting the streams of liquor, air or gas upon thefabric web are preferably such as will transform potential energy ofiluid under pressure in a. chamber to kinetic energy, and further thestreams are preferably directed at an angle to the fabric web. Suchstreams may be directed either at an angle reversely to the direction ofdisplacement of the In Great Britain Defabric web relatively thereto orin the same direction, 'and a convenient arrangement will be one wheregroups of nozzles are disposed directed at diifering angles so thatthere will be a tendency for the fabric web to be compressedlongitudinally between separate groups of nozzles, thus minimizinglength tension.

Finally, drying and setting of the fabric is effected by moistening thefabric with the application of steam and drying and setting it in astenter. Owing to the fact that initial drying can be effectedsubstantially in the absence of weft and Warp tension it is possible toshrink fabric to such an extent that it can be subjected to steam andmay be fed to a stenter at a width less than its i'lnished stenterwidth. The fabric web may be fed into a stenter with a small amount ofoverfeed. In setting fabric the warp shrinks an amount compatible withthe amount of overfeed such that no warp tension is introduced therebyand at the same time the fabric is pulled to width and set by theintroduction of weft tension in the stenter.

The fabric is thus shrunk to such an extent that a final flnishdimensionally stable to washing and laundering shrinkage is obtainedwithout the necessity for any mechanical process causing compression ofthe weftswith longitudinal shrinkage or other similar subsequentshrinking processes. y

The invention will be further described with reference tov theaccompanying drawings, Ain which:

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic representation of an apparatus embodying thepresent invention, and

Fig- 2 is a diagrammatic represesentation of a further form cf apparatusembodying the present invention.

In the drawings like reference numerals indicate like parts.

Fabric web I is passed through liquor treatment vats 2 by means of feedand guide rollers 3, I, 5 and 6. Liquor contained in the vat is dircctedunder pressure by any suitable means, not shown, to nozzles 1 by whichstreams of liquor are directed on to the fabric web I. Preferably thestreams of liquor are directed on to the fabric web approximately atright angles and the resulting battering into the centre of the fabricweb aists in producing shrinkage and relaxation of the strains. Afterthe impingement of streams of liquor the fabric web is passed betweensqueeze rolls 8 and passed on to scray 9.

In the drawings there is only shown one liquor treatment vat but theinvention is not limited to the provision of only one liquor treatmentvat. It will be understood that in such cases this merely represents thelast vat in a series which are adapted, for example, firstly fordesizing. washing, scouring, dyeing and subsequent washing or otherprocesses.

From the scray I the fabric web is fed into a drying machine I0 throughwhich it is passed by means of the rollers Il. Heated air for drying isdelivered by means not shown to conduit I2 and thence into pressurechambers I3; nozzles I4 disposed on opposite sides of the fabric webdirect streams of heated air on to the fabric web from the pressurechambers I3. Certain or all of the rollers II are driven mechanically bya prime mover, not shownI and the speeds of rotation of the rollers arenot all equal but differ in order to loverfeed so as to assist insubstantially reducing warp tension when in the drying machine.

After partial drying in the'drying machine I l the fabric web is passedfor nishing and setting in stenter I5. The fabric web may be moistenedin the initial stage of processing in the stenter Il by the applicationof steam in a known manner. Thereafter it is dried and pulled to sizewith the application of w'eft tension. The fabric web is arranged to beoverfed to the stenter so as to allow for warp shrinkage andsubstantially reduce the possibility of said shrinkage causing warptension. After passing through the stenter the fabric web is plaited upinto a loose pile I6 or otherwise collected in a known manner.

In the apparatus shown diagrammatically in Pig. 2y after being passedthrough liquor vat 2 and passed on to scray l as described in connectionwith the apparatus shown diagrammatically in Fig. l, the fabric web isfed into the drying machine fIl) in which it is completely dried. Heatedair for drying is delivered, by means not shown, to conduit 32 andthence into pressure chambers Il having nozzles similar to those of theconstruction of Fig. 1. The maximum relaxation of strains in fibres isachieved by ensuring that the fabric web is completely dried. Thereafterin order to set the fabric web it is necessary to moisten the fabric weband to apply heat thereto. 'I'hus the fabric web is fed into a steamerI1 through which it is passed by means of rollers I8 and in which it issubjected to the application of steam in order to moisten the fabricweb. Steam is delivered into conduit I! from any suitable source, notshown, and thence to pressure chambers 20 from which it is directed bymeans of nozzles, not shown, on to opposite i sides of the fabric web.As hereinbefore described with reference to the drying machine 30, therollers Il are driven from an external prime mover, not shown, atdiffering speeds so as to compensate for alteration in warp lengths andthe lower rollers may be arranged to overfeed so as substantially toreduce warp tension.

After passing through steamer I1, the fabric web is passed to a shortrange stenter 2 I in which it is merely dried and set, there being noinitial stage wherein steam is applied to the fabric web as in thestenter I 5. The fabric web is effectively fully shrunk before it ispassed to the stenter frame and consequently it is not normallynecessary for the web to be overfed. Weft tension is applied to thefabric web in order to draw it out and set it to the required width.'I'he web is stretched whilst in a plastic form at the entrance end ofthe stenter frame. One or more steam nozzles may be positioned at theentrance end in order to keep the fabric web hot and moist and prevent adrop in temperature. After the fabric web has been drawn out and set tothe required width it is cooled as quickly as possible. When the fabricweb comes into contact with normally cooled air any superfluous moistureis steamed off and in evaporating cools the fabric web. After passingthrough the stenter 2| the fabric web is either plaited up intcfa loosepile II or collected in any known manner.

The amount of moisture which is added to the fabric yweb by steaming isnormally such as to raise the weight of the fabric web a little, forexample 1% or 2% above its nnal conditioned weight. If it is desired toadd more moisture to the fabric web this may be achieved by applyingsteam to one side only of lthe fabric web and allowing the steam tocondense byl cooling the other side of the fabric web. Preferably thesteam used in the steamer is circulated in an almost closedr circuit,fresh steam being added in order to allow for loss of steam throughentrance and exit openings in the steamer, and in order to maintain therequired temperature and prevent excessive condensation.

The accompanying drawings are not in any sense limiting but are merelydiagrammatic representations of two forms of apparatus embodying thepresent invention. For instance, the fabric web need not be passedvertically through a drying machine but may be passed thiough any knownform of drying machine by which the fabric can be passed substantiallyin the absence of weft and warp tension. Similarly the application ofhot air or steam to the fabric web by means of nozzles, whilst beingextremely beneicial and advantageous, is preferable but not absolutelyessential.

I claim:

l. An apparatus for treating of woven webs of textile fabric consistingof a liquor treatment vat, means to guide the web through said vat, adrying machine, a scray interposed between said vat and said dryingmachine, means to convey said web through said drying machinesubstantially in the absence of warp and weft tension in said web, meansto moisten said web, means to finally dry said web, and means to applyweft tension to said web when in said final drying means.

2. An apparatus for treating of woven webs of textile fabric consistingof a liquor treatment vat, means to guide the web through said vat, adrying machine, a scray interposed between said vat and said dryingmachine, means to convey said web through said drying machinesubstantially in the absence of warp and weft tension in said web, aplurality of nozzles in said drying machine disposed with their axes atan angle to the sides of said web, means for supplying hot air to saidnozzles to direct streams of hot air at high velocity on to said web,means to moisten said web after it has passed through said dryingmachine, means to finally dry said web. and means to apply weft tensionto said web when in said final drying means.

3. An apparatus for treating of woven webs of textile fabric consistingof a liquor treatment vat, means to guide the web through said vat, adrying machine, a scray interposed between said vat and said dryingmachine, means to convey said web through said drying machinesubstantially in the absence of warp and weft tension in said web, aplurality of nozzles in said drying machine disposed at an angle to thesides 6 of said web, means for supplying hot air to said REFERENCESCITED nozzlFs to dlrectlstreams 0f hot alf at hlgh The followingrreferences are of record in the veloclty on to said web, a steamer,means to me of this patent;

convey said web through said steamer substantially in the absence ofwarp and weft tension in 5 UN :I D STATES PAIEIITS said web, means insaid steamer for applying Number Name Date steam to said web, means tofinally dry said 2,109,469 Cohn et al' Ma'r- 1 1938 web, and means toapply weft tension to said 2251'127 Gessner July 29 1941 web when insaid nal drying means. 2275278 Andrews """f" Mar 3 1942 10 2,325,545Redman a July 2T, 1943 2,390,451 Morrill Dec. 4, 1945 WILLIAM WYCLIFFESPOONER- 2,415,379 n Vieira Feb. 4, 1947

